Did Jalen Hurts, Eagles Passing Game Get Worse During Bye?

2025 Fantasy Football Impact

The wind didn't help the passing on either side Sunday night. Lions QB Jared Goff completed just 14 of his 37 attempts for the game.  But two of those found Jahmyr Gibbs and Jameson Williams in the short range to set up catch-and-run gains of 40+ yards. (Williams' went for a 40-yard TD.)

Hurts, meanwhile, attempted nine "deep" throws -- according to official NFL stats -- and connected on just one of them: a 34-yarder to WR Jahan Dotson in the third quarter.

The wind wasn't a surprise during the game. NBC's Mike Tirico called it "crazy" ahead of kickoff. But here's how Philly's offense opened the night:

• incomplete deep throw to DeVonta Smith
• incomplete short toss to Dallas Goedert
• 12-yard completion to A.J. Brown to convert third-and-10
• incomplete deep throw to Saquon Barkley
• 5-yard Tank Bigsby run
• incomplete short ball to Brown
• Hurts 1-yard scramble on third-and-15
• punt

OK. Maybe the Eagles thought they'd catch Detroit by surprise with that immediate passing. It didn't work, so they'll probably change it up on the ensuing possession, right -- especially after the Lions gift them an INT to start at Detroit's 11-yard line?

Two-yard pass to Brown in first. No gain for Barkley on second. Incomplete to Brown on third. Field goal.

Which Blew More: Wind or Philly's Game Plan?

For the game, Hurts tossed nine "deep" balls. That's 32% of Hurts' total attempts for the game. He completed one of them. And that's for the team that never trailed.

Detroit, by contrast, attempted seven "deep" passes among 37 attempts (19%). Four of those came in the fourth quarter, with the Lions trailing by 10 or 7 points.

This was a Detroit offense, by the way, in just its second game of switching playcalling duties. The Lions scored just 6 points, so their approach clearly didn't work. But the Philly defense clearly played a big role in that throughout the night. DT Jordan Davis, for example, batted three passes at the line. That doubled his total for the season and makes 10 for his four-year career.

Detroit's D play well, but Hurts took just two hits in the pocket for the whole game. He had just three of his passes defensed. There was no Lions defensive domination. There was more "why can't the Eagles get the ball to any of their stars."

Things looked that way the previous week at Green Bay as well. And the offense has basically looked disjointed all season, outside of:

• the win at Minnesota
• the win vs. the Giants (after an ugly loss in the first meeting)
• and the second half against the Rams

Here's Why These Details Matter Now

The Eagles have now managed just 10 and 16 points in the two games coming out of their bye, tallying just 294 and 272 total yards, and enduring Hurts' two worst completion rates of the year.

There's still no single problem to point to as the item that needs to be fixed. And that's bad for the fantasy outlooks of all the prime Philly players.

It's even worse after the Eagles lost RT Lane Johnson to a foot injury (we'll see for how long). C Cam Jurgens also got hurt late in the game.

The (Slight) Reason for Optimism

Fortunately for Hurts and his mates, the matchups get much better the next two weeks.

Green Bay and Detroit haven't been tough on QB scoring, but they both rank among the top 8 in defensive DVOA.

Week 12 holds a trip to Dallas, which sits 31st in DVOA (heading into Monday night). Then comes Chicago (28th).

How the Philly offense fares in those two contests should instruct how much we can trust them in trickier matchups with the Chargers and Raiders the following two games.

Of course, there's not much you can do but roll with your Philly pieces from here. That said, don't close yourself off to the possibility of a Hurts-involved trade that could boost your roster.

Dynasty Impact

I mentioned this last week as well, but it's not a bad time to at least run a price check on Hurts in dynasty.

For all the detractors who deride his passing, Hurts is completing 66.7% of his passes at 7.7 yards per attempt with a 4.9% TD rate over the past four years.

He's likely to outlast the current OC. He retains that significant rushing upside. And he won't turn 28 until next August.